EurKey -- US basiertes Tastaturlayout mit Umlauten über AltGr: moderner Windows Installer

Für diejenigen, die programmieren, im Ausland leben und so weiter ist es teils praktischer ein Tastaturlayout zu nutzen, dass auf dem US Layout basiert. US International erlaubt das und auch die Nutzung der Umlaute. Allerdings sind ' (quote) und ein paar andere Zeichen, die man oft direkt tippen will dann als tote Taste realisiert. EurKey hat das Problem nicht und bietet darüber hinaus noch viele andere Zeichen, wie die griechischen Buchstaben oder mathematische Zeichen.

Leider scheint EurKey nicht mehr groß gepflegt zu werden und die letzte Version für Windows von 2017 macht teils Probleme. Ich habe daher das Layout in einen modernen Installer gepackt, der mit x86, x64 und ARM64 funktioniert und auch einen gescheiten Uninstaller hat:

https://github.com/rpnfan/EurKey-fork-for-Windows

Gern ein Sternchen bei Github lassen, damit ich sehe, ob das jemand nutzt und sich über eine aktuelle Version freut. :-)

Ich überlege ein neues Layout zu basteln. Was würde euch fehlen oder würdet ihr euch wünschen? Ich vermisse zum Beispiel ein paar typographische Nettigkeiten wie em-dashes.

reddit.com
u/rpnfan — 3 days ago
▲ 8 r/KeyboardLayouts+1 crossposts

EurKey layout v 1.3 - modern Windows installer (x86, x64 and ARM64) instead of US Intl.

Like many here I am using US International as the keyboard layout in the OS as the basis for all remappings done in hardware or software.

Unfortunately things get a bit more complicated as soon you want to remap shifted key-output (shift override), which is either not supported (e.g. in ZSA's Oryx) or can become way more complicated and cumbersome than you might think (e.g. in Kanata or QMK -- ask my how I know ;-) ).

Another smaller pain point of US Intl. is that on the base layer characters such as quote ' are realized as a dead-key and require a space to output the literal character.

I was looking for better layouts in these regards and in the end found EurKey to come close to what many would need or want. It also offers the complete greek alphabet and many math symbols. Unfortunately the project seems not well maintained (v 1.3 beta since 2017) and the Windows installer and the layout it installs does not work in all cases reliably or at all. Therefore I rebuild the layout installer with kbdedit, which works as expected and solves the problems of the MSKLC based installer Steffen (author of EurKey) uses.

Here the updated installer: https://github.com/rpnfan/EurKey-fork-for-Windows

u/rpnfan — 3 days ago
▲ 6 r/MechKeyboards+1 crossposts

Tactile Choc v2 vs Choc v1 vs MX - comfort, speed and accuracy?

I somehow prefer to type on my MX keyboard (Kailh Silent Whale) over typing on my Choc v1 (Ambient Twilight) and think the preference is due the tactility.

On the Choc v1 I surely love the much lower footprint and I think the smaller spacing also works better -- but not sure about the latter (glove size 9 for my hands btw.).

The Ambient Sunrise Tactile might become an option one day (if we are lucky), but I had the impression that Choc v2 (Kailh Deep Sea Silent Mini Whale) are as good or almost as good compared to MX switches. I checked the travel of Choc v1 vs Choc v2 switches and they have roughly the same travel. Choc v1 even a tiny tad longer.

How is your experience or thoughts on why I likely prefer overall the typing on the MX keyboard and what is then the best switch (size and type / spring weight and spacing) for my hand size to have the best comfort, speed and accuracy?

I am aware that the keycaps play a huge role in that as well. But I now use the same KLP Lame on both the MX and the Choc spaced keyboard. Just that the keycaps on the MX keyboard are sized for Choc spacing and leave a small gap between the keys, which I do not like and think it is less optimal from a typing feel (let alone looks).

reddit.com
u/rpnfan — 21 days ago
▲ 28 r/MechKeyboards+3 crossposts

Free tap-timeout calibrator for anyone using tap-hold keys or home-row or bottom-row mods

Programmable keyboards like those running QMK, ZMK, or remapping software such as Kanata support tap-hold behavior: a brief press registers as a tap, while holding the same key longer triggers another action, for example a layer switch or a modifier such as Ctrl when using home-row or bottom-row mods. The duration, usually defined in milliseconds, that separates the two is called the tapping term. Set it too high and hold actions will feel sluggish; set it too low and deliberate holds fail to register. Getting it right is personal, and especially with QMK where every tweak means a recompile and a flash, trial and error gets tedious.

On my website you will find a simple browser widget to measure how long your keypresses actually last, and to get a feel for what hold duration feels natural to you. An accompanying tool shows the overlap timing between simultaneously pressed keys. Both can help you find or fine-tune your personal tapping term.

rpnfan.github.io
u/rpnfan — 1 month ago
▲ 56 r/olkb+2 crossposts

Keyboard Input Methods -- A Systematic Overview: Operating Systems, QMK, Kanata, ZMK ....

So far there was no structured overview of keyboard input mechanisms. In my opinion understanding some basic concepts and outlining them in an overview can be highly valuable for anyone trying to find or create his personal "best" keyboard solution:

https://rpnfan.github.io/keyboard-heaven/deep-dive/keyboard-input-methods/

The core idea is a distinction between three categories of input mechanism that I think is often overlooked, or at least rarely made explicit:

  • Free-timed — the timing window is controlled by your own physical action; output is always predictable
  • Threshold-timed — the firmware or OS has a fixed invisible deadline; misfires are possible; you need to match your typing speed to the time-window or vice versa
  • Context-aware / adaptive — the system watches your typing and modifies behavior automatically

Knowing which category a mechanism falls into immediately tells you what its tradeoffs are: reliability, latency, cognitive load, and learnability all follow directly from the category.

More explanatory text is coming, but the tables are already useful if you are trying to decide which approach fits your setup. They cover QMK, ZMK, Kanata, Karabiner-Elements, and all three major operating systems natively.

Feedback and corrections very welcome.

u/rpnfan — 2 months ago